


Makeouts in the Modern World

by audrey1nd



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (2012), Thor (Movies)
Genre: F/F, Female Steve Rogers, Genderswap, Rule 63
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-05-06
Updated: 2012-05-06
Packaged: 2017-11-05 04:55:09
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 15,559
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/402648
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/audrey1nd/pseuds/audrey1nd
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Darcy has been assigned to teach Captain Stephanie Rogers, or Steph, as she's told Darcy to call her, about the modern world and how to fit into it. This results in shenanigans, sassing Coulson, snarking with Natasha, Tony leering, movie dates and eventual makeouts.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Makeouts in the Modern World

**Author's Note:**

> And there's artwork! http://archiveofourown.org/works/399160

“Oh my god. Is this where we’re going to be living now? Is this a thing that dating superheroes gets you? Where’s my superhero?” Darcy asked Jane as they pulled up to SHIELD headquarters, where Jane’s new lab was going to be. And probably their new home, too. Darcy knew from past experience that they would essentially be living in the lab, rather than in whatever housing her SHIELD paycheck could get her. She hadn’t had time to find a place yet. She’d found that the way SHIELD operated was to whisk everything away and then decide what to do with it later. So when SHIELD decided that she and Jane needed to relocate to New York, they had just hustled them and their belongings onto a plane rather than giving them time to arrange a place to live before they went to New York. If they were lucky there’d be a couch or a futon in the new lab and Darcy could take a nap before starting to figure out their living arrangements.

Unfortunately, the lab was empty except for the boxes that had been confiscated from the lab in New Mexico.

“Really? You didn’t even get us desks! It’ll take me forever to get this place set up,” Darcy exclaimed out loud, leaning against the wall with an exasperated sigh.

Coulson just laughed. Darcy glared just glared at him. “I-pod stealer,” she muttered under her breath.

“Don’t worry, desks are coming. We didn’t know what kind of furniture you’d be needing for the lab so we decided to let you pick the furniture for the lab and the apartment you’ll be sharing with Jane. Your luggage should already be there waiting for you. But first, we have some paperwork for you and Jane to fill out.”

At the sound of her name, Jane looked up from where she was cooing to the equipment she hadn’t seen since it had been confiscated by SHIELD. Darcy just groaned. Jane hated paperwork, and as a result usually had Darcy do it. At first, Darcy hadn’t minded it, but filling out grant applications for a project where you don’t understand most of the terminology could wear on anyone’s patience. As a result, she had come to loathe paperwork just as much as Jane did. 

Darcy dragged Jane away from her boxes of work and they followed Coulson down the hall. He showed them into a conference room where they table was covered in neatly stacked piles of paper.

“This is a really bad joke, right?” Darcy said. “How much information could you possibly need from us that you don’t already know?”

“Mostly we just need you to sign lots of non-disclosure agreements…In triplicate. Some one will be in shortly to answer any questions you may have. Once you’re done filling out and signing your contracts, you’ll be able to choose the furniture you will need and fill out the requisition forms needed,” Coulson said with a smirk.

Darcy just sighed and took a chair at the table, pulling the nearest stack in front of her and taking a pen from the cup in the middle of the table. Jane joined her with a wary look and together they started reading through the paperwork. When Darcy was finished, she looked up to find an agent in the room with them. Darcy gave him an almost predatory grin before saying, “So, tell me how these requisition forms work.”

They emerged from the room an hour later. Jane was staring at Darcy in shock, while Darcy was grinning like the Cheshire cat. The agent followed behind them carrying a stack of requisition forms. Darcy decided she was going to like it at SHIELD, especially given how comfortable their apartment and lab were going to be. Funding was a nice thing. No wonder Jane had made her fill out those grant applications.

****

Eventually they got settled in and fell into a routine. People around the building started to recognize her, though usually all she got was a perfunctory “you are allowed to be here” nod. The agent from the first day turned and well, not ran, but walked very quickly in the other direction whenever he saw her. She didn’t blame him; he had filled in quite a lot of requisition forms for her that day. And she could probably get him to fill out more if he came close enough. He was a smart boy to avoid her like that.

She ended up spending most of her time in the cafeteria since, now that they weren’t out in the field, she was more of a personal assistant to Jane than a lab one. Listening to Jane talk to herself about things she had no idea about eventually got boring. At least there were people in the cafeteria. Her duties mostly consisted of making sure that Jane ate and filling out forms, though she sometimes got an unsuspecting SHIELD agent to do even that for her. Eventually it got to the point where Coulson noticed how much time she spent sitting around and started assigning her other tasks. Soon she was no longer Jane’s assistant, but one of Coulson’s. And while she still lived with Jane and thus was tasked with making sure she went home and slept, it got to the point where she didn’t even see Jane for lunch anymore. Instead, Darcy had started eating with the other SHIELD staff, and felt like one of them instead of “that girl who was only there because she tasered Thor” or “the one with the smile.” Not that she started wearing suits or anything, but she felt like a useful part of the organization instead of a waste of space. She was even given a new, government-issued taser! Though she’d been sternly warned not to use it unless the situation warranted it. Of course, her definition of what situations required a taser and which didn’t greatly differed from those of SHIELD agents. She may or may not have accidentally tasered an agent when they woke her up from a nap. She was startled and felt endangered okay? And he was a SHIELD agent; he should be able to handle a taser shock.

But anyways, Darcy was fitting in and hitting a paperwork and usefulness groove when all hell broke loose. And by that, she means they found Captain Fucking America. Unfortunately Darcy didn’t have the clearance or the training at the time to be assigned to the Captain’s little “reintegration” scheme. Though if they had asked her, she could have told them it wouldn’t have worked. Obviously SHIELD wasn’t full of researchers or they would have been able to get a recording of a baseball game from the right time period. And right after that clusterfuck was when Darcy’s life at SHIELD really changed. 

They needed someone to help the Captain acclimate to modern life. So they started to look through the personnel files to see who was most suited to the task. Which, of course, was Darcy the poly-sci major, aka the one who took classes on history, dealing with people, and foreign cultures. And the modern world was pretty much going to be a foreign culture to the Captain. Knowing a bunch of languages and how to kill someone with your pinky weren’t the skills needed to help a national hero, long thought dead, get used to modern life. Nope. The skills needed there were a general knowledge of history, how to deal with people and good old fashioned research skills. And if there was anything Darcy knew how to do well, it was how to do research and deal with people a little detached from the world.

****

Her first day meeting the Captain didn’t go quite as planned. Darcy walked in to the room she was supposed to be meeting the Captain in, only to find her absent. So Darcy wheedled her way into the security room and found that the Captain was in the gym beating up punch bags.

So, armed with her computer, taser and charm, she made her way down to the gym, only to have a punching bag fly straight at her when she opened the door.

Thankfully she ducked in time, but in her haste to get out of the way, she fell on top of her laptop.

“Oh my god! I am so sorry! I wasn’t expecting anyone to come down!” Captain America said, rushing towards Darcy to help her up. She was a tall woman with short, unevenly cut, dirty blonde hair. She held her hand out to Darcy, who took it, and was pulled to her feet, her feet almost leaving the ground with the force of the pull.

“Darcy Lewis,” she said, shaking the Captain’s hand. “We were supposed to meet upstairs about 15 minutes ago.” 

“Oh, I am so sorry! I must have lost track of time! I kind of zone out when I’m down here…” she trailed off and looked around guiltily at the room full of ruined exercise equipment. “Let me just go get changed and I’ll meet you upstairs in about 15 minutes. Is that okay? Did you have somewhere else you needed to be?”

“Nope. Meeting with you is all I’m doing today. I’m going to be helping you catch up on everything that’s happened in the last seventy years. But I think you might have more than 15 minutes,” Darcy said looking glumly at her computer. “I’m going to have to get a replacement and transfer the files I had. How about we meet in an hour? That’ll give you plenty of time to shower and get changed. Conference room 345 at 10:30, okay? Don’t make me fetch you again. Two computer replacements in one day would be really embarrassing,” Darcy said as she gathered up its remains.

“Yeah, okay,” Stephanie Rogers said, sheepishly playing with her sweaty hair. “I’ll make sure to make it this time. I wouldn’t want to put you in danger again. I am so, so sorry about that. Sometimes I’m not really aware of my own strength.”

“Well, that’s just something that we’ll, well not me and you,” Darcy gestured between herself and the Captain, “but you and SHIELD will have to work on,” Darcy said as she gestured to the ceiling, obviously referring to the rest of the building above their heads. “Training and stuff isn’t really my expertise, though I think Coulson might be thinking about making me go in for some. My donuts keep disappearing and being replaced by granola and bananas. Which would be cute except for the fact that I’m allergic to bananas,” Darcy rambled. Captain America was just really different from what she imagined. When Darcy was growing up she had a poster of Captain America punching Hitler right next to pictures of her favorite celebrities. This tall, shy woman, who was staring at Darcy as if she had grown an extra head, was nothing like what she had expected. “Anyways, gotta go replace this. See you then!” Darcy yelled as she made a hasty retreat. She saw the Captain shaking her head and smiling just a little bit in reflection on the elevator door as she waited for it. Well, at least she thought Darcy was amusing.

****

An hour later, Darcy was drinking coffee and waiting for her files to transfer to her new computer when Captain America, freshly showered with her dark blonde hair curling delicately around her face and dressed in khakis and white button down, came into the room. Darcy took a quick gulp of her coffee to brace herself for spending the rest of the morning, and who knows how much longer, with the gorgeous woman that was Captain Stephanie Rogers. 

Of course, she was still Darcy, so instead of making cow-eyes at the Captain, she stood up and snarked, “Glad to see you were able to find the room, Captain.”

Thankfully, the Captain didn’t seem to pick up on her sarcasm and just blushed, saying, “Please, call me Steph. My friends used to call me that and well, if you’re going to be taking the time to help me out, I’d like us to be friends,” she said with a sad look in her eyes.

Darcy had to work to keep a straight face at “Steph” after that instead of just cooing at her. Seriously, was this girl real? She was just too adorable to be true, possible anger and control issues aside. Darcy smiled widely and said, “I’d like that. And well, it’s not like I’m really doing anything useful for SHIELD. I used to be a lab assistant, but I kind of was no longer needed and they decided it was best to keep me around and after the clusterfuck,” Steph made a face at the curse, “that was them trying to trick you into thinking it was the forties, they realized that hey, that chick with the taser actually has some useful skills.” Darcy paused for breath. “Oh god, rambling. Sorry! You must think I am a total weirdo.” Darcy face-palmed and sunk back down into her chair.

Steph just laughed as she pulled out the chair next to Darcy and sat down. “It’s totally fine. I know all about being awkward.” She blushed. “I mean, I don’t know how much you know about me before the program, but I used to be pretty tiny. And a five foot tall tomboy trying to keep up with a bunch of full grown men joining the army? Trying to enlist was pretty awkward. The few times I managed to hide the fact that I was a girl they pretty much rejected me on how tiny I was alone, my asthma not withstanding.” She shifted, and shrugged. “My friend Bucky used to tease me about my short legs not being able to keep up, but I walked a lot faster than him. He was always trying to keep up with me,” she smiled at the memory, but then looked unbearably sad.

Darcy wasn’t sure how to react, so responded to what the Captain had said about being short. “I know exactly how it is. Tall people walk so slow,” she said with a huff. “They claim it’s so that you can keep up with them, but I’m always a block ahead. I hope you’ve kept up your speed-walking skills despite the height difference.”

The Captain smiled again, the sad look leaving her eyes. “Oh, don’t worry. I’m sure I’ll be able to keep up. I’m from Brooklyn, I know all about walking fast in New York City.”

Darcy had only seen her stern and serious in all of the propaganda she had done during the war. Even in photos of her with her team she wasn’t smiling much. There were a few candid ones where she was with a dark-haired man and another woman where her whole smile lit up the page. Darcy was hoping she was going to get to know that side of the Captain. It was nice to see the woman smiling after all that had happened to her. But Darcy was seriously not going to survive this assignment without embarrassing herself forever if the Captain didn’t stop being so sweet. Thankfully no one else was around to give her shit for being such a dork.

She laughed awkwardly and said, “Well, now that we’ve commiserated about being short, why don’t we start. First off, are there any pressing questions you had? Otherwise we’ll just start from where you “left off,” so to speak.” Darcy made air quotes and started pulling up the lesson plan she had made.

“Well, um, there’s this friend I had? I’d really like to be able to look her up and find out if she’s still alive and what she did with her life. Well, all of my other friends too, but her in particular.” And there she went again with the blushing. Darcy was going to have a heart attack from the cute if the Captain – no, Steph, didn’t cut it out.

“Do you know anything about using computers yet? An internet search of her name would be the easiest way to find her.” Darcy shifted over so that Steph could see the screen and opened up a new tab. Yes, she had just gotten a new computer and already the screen was full of tabs. “What’s her name? The more specific the better. You never know who else might have had her name since then.”

“Yeah, I kind of know how they work. I haven’t really been using them a lot though. Her name was uh, Peggy Carter. Well, really, Margaret Carter. She was an English Agent during the war.” Steph was still being her awkward adorable self, not quite meeting Darcy’s eyes. Hmm, there must be something about this Peggy that the Captain wasn’t telling her. Well, the internet would probably tell her all about it in a moment.

“Okay, so this website is called “Google.” You type in whatever it is that you’re looking for information about, whether it be a person, place, thing, or even scientific knowledge. Google gives all. There are other websites that do the same thing, but Google is the easiest, especially since there’s usually a search bar,” Darcy pointed to where it was on her screen, “and all you have to do is type in what you want there and it will search it for you. Did a lot of people call her Peggy, or just friends?”

“Well, I called her Peggy. Most of the other people around called her Agent Carter.”

“Okay, so let’s start with “Agent Margaret Carter” and let me know if you see anything that seems like it would be about her on the screen.” Darcy typed it in and immediately her page was full of hits. “Oh wow, it seems like she was quite the war hero.”

Steph smiled shyly. “Yeah, she was really swell.”

Darcy clicked on the Wikipedia article about her and her face immediately fell. “Oh, I’m so sorry,” she said without thinking.

Steph looked at the screen and her face immediately fell. It seemed that Peggy had died right around the time she had woken up. 

“Do you want to read the rest? See what she did with her life?” Darcy asked softly, trying not to interrupt the Captain’s grief at another lost friend and lost opportunity. 

“Huh, what? Um, yeah. I’d like that. I’d like it a lot.”

“Okay, well, why don’t you try navigating the page on your own. To scroll down you can either press the space bar, here” Darcy gestured towards the keyboard, “or touch the mouse pad.” Darcy demonstrated how to do both and moved the computer over to the Captain. Steph became enthralled by what was on the screen, and Darcy quietly snuck out of the room, leaving the Captain some privacy for her grief.

*****

An hour later Darcy came back, having taken the time to run some errands for Coulson. She knocked on the door and entered once she heard the Captain say, “Come in.” She entered the room cautiously, trying not to intrude too much, especially if the Captain was upset.

“Hey. I thought you might like to grab some lunch. If you’re feeling up to it, of course. If you’re not we can resume this tomorrow,” Darcy shrugged awkwardly.

Steph smiled at Darcy, her eyes a little wet, but otherwise seeming okay. “I’m okay. She lived a really full life. It makes me happy that she was able to do everything she told me she wanted to do.” Steph closed the laptop and got out of her chair. “And yes, I would really appreciate that, thank you. I’ve mostly been eating on my own. Well, pretty much everything on my own. I don’t really get many visitors, and I don’t really know anyone else other than you, Director Fury and Agent Coulson.”

Seriously? They left her own her own? Darcy was going to yell at Coulson about how they’d been treating Steph. Not that she already hadn’t when she heard what happened, but keeping her all cooped up by herself after that? It was just mean. If they hadn’t, Steph might have even been able to see her friend before she died! Darcy almost growled at how stupid SHIELD could be sometimes about people. Yes, they were a government organization, but they weren’t dealing with people who had come from government backgrounds. Darcy’d read up on the Captain, and even she hadn’t had much military training before the serum injections and afterwards she had just kind of gone rogue, depending on her enhancements rather than any actual training. You couldn’t treat someone who was going through as much as the Captain was like just another government goon. The poor girl probably needed therapy! But if all she was going to get was Darcy, then Darcy was going to do the best job she could. 

Darcy smiled really big at the Captain. “Unfortunately, we’re only going to the cafeteria. Maybe we can get you out for a field trip later if I can come up with something Coulson will approve of.”

*****

Lunch was just the normal cafeteria fare, but Steph seemed way too excited about it. She kept waving at all of the agents who stared at her while they got their food. She tried to introduce herself to them, but they retreated too quickly for Steph to do more than get halfway out of her chair. By the end of lunch Steph had lost her excitement and was instead pouting into the cake Darcy had convinced her to get. After all, what was the use of having such as fast metabolism if you couldn’t eat as much cake as you wanted?

“They’ve been doing that ever since I got here. Sometimes I see the girl who was there when I first woke up. I tried to go over to her to apologize for my behavior and she acted like she had no idea who I was and just walked right past me.”

Darcy viciously stabbed her cake and stuffed some into her mouth to stop herself from growling. She seriously needed to have a talk with Coulson. Darcy swallowed her cake and smiled at Steph. “Why don’t you take the rest of the afternoon off? I can get you a computer for you to practice with and we can start again tomorrow and see how much you’ve learned. I’ll show you how to write documents and you can come prepared with any questions you might have or things you would like to learn about most. I’ve realized that I need to yell – run some errands,” Darcy widened her eyes in an innocent expression, “so we can really get started tomorrow.”

Steph made a face Darcy couldn’t quite figure out, though it was probably related to disappointment. She nodded while she moved her cake around. “I guess I’m done eating…”

“Okay, great. Well, here’s a modern era lesson for you. People have gotten really into recycling and whatnot because we’ve pretty much destroyed the earth and used up its natural resources. So when you throw things out you sort them into compost, recycling and landfill. Plastics and clean papers go into recycling, things like food and plates and utensils marked compostable go into the compost bin and everything else goes into the landfill part. Think about it this way, if it will decompose or rot, it goes in compost, if it’s cleanish, recycling and if it’s gross, just throw it away. See?” Darcy said as she put her lunch into the various marked containers.

“I think I’ve got it,” Steph said as she threw out her lunch.

“Okay. We’re off to get you a shiny new computer then!” Darcy turned toward Steph and held up a finger. “Just one warning, don’t google yourself. You never know what will show up and you probably won’t want to read most of it. Seriously, there are some things people have written about you that would scar your brain. Not like, negative. Just like, ewww, did not need to know you thought about me like that type of thing. Got it?”

Steph nodded and opened the door for Darcy as they exited the cafeteria, motioning for her to go first.

****

Darcy charged into Coulson’s office. Thanks to her position as one of Coulson’s assistants she didn’t have to wait to be cleared for entrance to the area. It really ruined her ranting momentum when she had to wait an extra five minutes to get in and then was angry about the wait rather than whatever she had originally come for. Then again, maybe that was the point. Unfortunately, because of her position as his assistant, Coulson knew what the look she currently had on her face meant. She glared at him while he stared impassively at her until she spoke. 

“You’ve been keeping her cooped up all by herself and on top of that scared the other agents away from her? How mean are you?” Darcy gestured wildly with her hands. “Her friend died while you were keeping her down there alone! She could have visited Peggy before she died! It probably would have helped to see a friend, no matter how much older she was! Do you think people have no feelings or something? The poor girl is lonely, angry and confused! And you were going to have some random agent help her figure out modern life? Did you want to traumatize the poor girl? Yes, she’s technically military, but that doesn’t mean she lives and breathes it like you do! She wasn’t even in the war for a year, and her basic training was pretty short before she got the serum.” Darcy slammed her hands down on Coulson’s desk.

Coulson opened his mouth to speak, but Darcy just kept speaking right over him. “Don’t you dare defend what you did with the Captain when she first woke up. Have you seen the gym downstairs? It is full of broken punching bags! She said the only people she knew before today were you and Director Fury! The other agents run away when she tries to talk to them! What kind of “reintegration” is that?!” Darcy took a breath. “Yes, I’m done. What?”

Coulson looked a little flustered for once. “After the Captain’s reaction to our scenario,” he winced at the word, “we decided it would be best for the Captain if her interaction with the outside world were kept to a minimum, including interaction with agents. They may have interpreted our orders a bit too extremely. I’ll issue a memo redacting the order to avoid unnecessary interaction with the Captain along with a new one that allows for interaction with the Captain.” He arched an eyebrow at Darcy, as if to say, “anything else you’d like me to do?”

“Yes, thank you. Having lunch with her today was just heartbreaking. She looked like a kicked puppy by the end because all the agents she waved to just kept on walking, pretending like she didn’t exist.” Darcy sank down into the chair in front of his desk. “Also, I know that her friend Peggy died recently, but do you know if anyone else she knew during the war is still alive? I think it’d do a lot for her morale and it would help her figure out the present if she could talk with some of her old friends. They could talk about the war and they might have good insights to help her understand modern technology and culture.”

“I’m sure something like that can be arranged. Obviously the public is not yet aware of the Captain’s discovery, but given that her friends were once military, we might be able to have some of them visit. I will look into it. Anything else?”

“Field trips.” Coulson arched his eyebrow at her again. “You know, so she can see what the world is like now instead of just learning from me, textbooks and the Internet? Getting out into the city and seeing things like the MoMA, maybe a baseball game, etc. would probably really help her feel more comfortable with waking up seventy years in the future.”

“As I said, the public is not yet aware of the Captain’s discovery.”

“And they don’t have to be told. In fact, it would make it easier to take her places if no one is going to recognize her or think that it’s her because she “died” seventy years ago. I just don’t think it’s good to keep her cooped up at headquarters.” Darcy shrugged. “I’ll give you a list of possible locations, so you can arrange some security. By which I mean plant an agent as a museum guard, not clear out the museum or have us be part of an entourage. It’d probably hurt her feelings if she thought you didn’t trust her to go out, even with me as supervision.” Coulson smirked at her. “I totally count as supervision! I even look both ways when I cross the street!”

“Now,” Coulson coughed into his fist. “Yeah, I’ll see what I can do. If you think it’d be good for her education and morale, I’m sure we can arrange for field trips. Director Fury has been worrying about the state of the basement.”

“Well okay then.” Darcy got out of the chair she’d been sitting in. “By the way, I’ve taught her how to use a computer and am going to have her do research and practice using the internet and word processors. Don’t take this as me approving of it, because censorship is bad and you know my rant about it, but is there anything you want me to block? Any search terms or things you don’t want her to know about yet? I advised her not to look herself up.”

“Just make sure she can’t access anything more than the SHIELD internet and we should be fine. Wouldn’t want her wandering through the mainframe.”

Darcy nodded and turned to leave.

“One more thing,” Coulson said. “Try not to rub off on her. I’d hate to have her disobeying orders.”

Darcy smiled, she’d love to “rub off” on the Captain. No pervy thoughts, bad Darcy! She had to work with the woman. “I’ll see what I can do. Maybe some time with Natasha would be good for her. She follows yours orders, doesn’t she?” She smirked and walked out of Coulson’s office. Agent Romanoff would be a very good mentor for the Captain. She might take orders, but she was awesome and used even less effort than Darcy to get people to do what she wanted them to. Captain Rogers might have been able to command a unit of soldiers, but she seemed awkward and shy now. Asserting dominance off the battlefield, rather than being adorable and shy, was probably a lesson that Stephanie Rogers needed to learn. At least in this modern day and age. 

****

Darcy had set the Captain up with a computer, safe search on, and then went to her cubicle to set up some lesson plans and field trips for the Captain. While she’d like to take the Captain to the Met, she would have to coordinate it around any possible school holidays, school tours, and crowds, in addition to getting through security with her taser just in case anyone did indeed recognize the Captain. Unlike the MoMA, the Met got really crowded, especially at the entrance. Perhaps she would set up a private tour of some sort so they could avoid the crowds at the entrance, but still allow the Captain to have a normal experience. Darcy was sure she’d appreciate a tour. On the other hand, rather than showing the Captain art she was already familiar with, perhaps the MoMA would be best suited to all of their needs. Less security, fewer crowds, and it was actually a place where the Captain could learn about the modern age. They would probably need a tour there too. Darcy had started attending as many museums as she could in her free time, why not take advantage of being in the city, but despite how often she went to the MoMA, she still occasionally found herself getting lost. So, private tours for all museums, but still going during normal hours. On the other hand, her membership at the MoMA did allow her to bring guests to exhibition openings. Fewer crowds, a new exhibition, the Captain all dressed up…

Darcy shook her head and returned to looking up how to set up private tours at the museums she believed the Captain would both enjoy and learn from. It would not do to fantasize about the Captain. Not only was there the whole dating a coworker thing, though the Captain wasn’t so much a coworker as she was someone in a separate division that Darcy was lucky enough to interact with, but there was the whole army thing too. Darcy doubted that Captain America, wonder girl from the 1940s, would be into girls. Not only was she old fashioned, but she was also in the army. On the other hand, Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell had just been repealed, so who knew? Darcy decided to look up the woman that Steph had mentioned. 

It turned out that Captain Rogers’s “Peggy” had been a British Agent during World War II who had been part of some top-secret missions during the war and had continued to be involved in British-American joint missions over the years. And she had apparently been the first female officer to marry another woman, when Britain started allowing civil partnerships. The military had allowed gays to serve since the late 90s, and apparently Peggy had been one of the higher-ranking officials to support the change. And apparently Steph had seen all this when she read about her friend. Perhaps the tears weren’t so much for a friend but for a lover that had never been? There was a rumor that the Captain had said she “had a date,” when she first woke up, only to learn that it was seventy years in the future. Perhaps that date had been with Peggy? She was the first person the Captain asked about when Darcy mentioned her friends from the war. But either way, Darcy wasn’t going to push. She might add in a few lessons about the gay rights movement in the sixties and now, but the Captain was a woman out of time. She needed to adjust and learn. Darcy leering at her, however hard it was not to do so, would probably not help with her adjustment to the modern age. And so, back to lesson planning it was.

*****

“Now, I know you were in World War II, but you spent most of your time fighting Schmidt and well, there was a lot more going on than that.” Darcy was sitting in the conference room with the Captain. Coulson had set up a reunion with what was left of her team for the weekend, and so Darcy was launching into her lesson plans. “Now I know you knew who Hitler was, but he was a lot worse than anyone thought. In fact, the extent of what he was doing wasn’t even discovered until after the war ended. Were you aware of how he was rounding up Jews and other “undesirables?” Well, he killed over eleven million civilians in concentration camps during the war.” 

The Captain looked shocked. “I had no idea. Schmidt only ever took soldiers. Those poor people… I wish I could have done something.” 

Darcy patted her awkwardly on the arm. “You did what you could. If you hadn’t stopped Schmidt I’m sure it would have been much, much worse. But on to why I’ve decided this is relevant, other than just informing you of facts that will depress you,” Darcy quipped. She pulled a brochure from her pile of papers. “We are going to be going to the Museum of Modern Art on Monday. They are currently having an exhibition on Lee Miller and Farley Farm House. As Lee Miller was a war photographer, lots of the work shown will have to do with the parts of World War II that you missed. She was one of the first people into the concentration camps after they were liberated. We can also look around the rest of the museum. There’s a design section, they have quite a number of Picassos, Van Goghs and Matisses, which I’m sure you will enjoy” She listed them out on her fingers as she spoke. “They also have lots of paintings that are more modern, and some pretty awesome sculptures too. If anything reflects what is going on in the world, it is art. Or at least, that’s how I convinced Coulson.” Steph laughed at that. “Oh, if you’re really good, or if they put on a relevant exhibition, I might be able to sneak you out to the Met.” Darcy mimed someone sneaking around with her index and middle fingers. “I’ve heard you’re a bit of an artist, and as far as I can tell, artists love sketching things at the Met.”

Steph gave Darcy a huge grin. “I would love that. It sounds like a wonderful outing. Only…I don’t have anything to sketch with.”

Darcy frowned. “Seriously? Am I allowed to yell at Coulson again? Do you think he’d take away our field trip if I did?”

“Again? Did you really do that? Is that why everyone seems friendly to the point of terrified not to be?” Steph gave Darcy a look between, “you are so sweet” and “oh my god, you yelled at your boss for me. I really hope you don’t get in trouble.”

“Has he still not fixed the agents? Augh!” Darcy cried out. “Seriously, it’s like these people aren’t actually human. Are they robots? You’d tell me if you knew they were robots, right?” She grabbed Steph’s arm with a conspiratorial look. “I mean, I know Iron Man is kind of a robot, but there’s a real person inside there, however faily he might be.”

“Iron man? What are you talking about Darcy?”

“Oh, there’s this guy who “consults” for SHIELD, who has this metal suit that has all of these awesome features and it flies around and stuff. So he’s kind of like a robot, except he has feelings. Well, kind of. It doesn’t seem like he deals with them very well. He’s kind of a mess most of the time.” Darcy shrugged. Then she realized she was still holding on to the Captain’s arm and quickly let go. She coughed. “Anyways, I can totally requisition you some art supplies. Just let me know what you’d like and I will have it before next week! Seriously, I am so good with those forms,” she gloated. “And I’ll try to get us some spending money for the museum. They’ve got some pretty great things in their shop. Art books and supplies, raincoats, chairs, it’s a little ridiculous, but I could spend almost as much time there as in the museum itself.” She smiled thinking about all of the things in the store, then shook her head. “Anyways, back to our lesson! People had lots of babies after the war! They’re called “Baby Boomers” and are all getting on in age about now, but such a large number of young people really had an effect on the entirety of American society.”

And so Darcy began her history lessons for Captain America. She found the Captain’s perspective on some of the things that had happened quite interesting. Her sense of wrong and right was stronger than her sense of patriotism and she was horrified at some of the things that had happened during the Vietnam war. 

After a few weeks she noticed that the Captain came in wearing the same clothes every day. By the third week Darcy was sick of seeing the same white button down and khakis. She hadn’t seen the Captain in anything other than that or her workout clothes of a white t-shirt and army pants. 

“Steph, you know you can wear whatever you want to our sessions, right? Don’t feel that you have to dress formally for me. If I weren’t still doing things for Coulson, I would be wearing jeans and a t-shirt to our sessions. I hope that you feel comfortable enough with me to dress down.”

“Well, I used to wear dresses and skirts sometimes before the war, but now this is kind of all I have, along with my army clothes. They were in the dresser in the room SHIELD assigned to me.”

“Does no one at SHIELD have people skills except, apparently, Agent Romanoff? Is she the only one who isn’t a robot? Like, I’ve seen Coulson fight. I would definitely believe it if he were. Our other field trips worked out, I’m sure I’ll be able to get you out for a shopping trip. It can count as a lesson in modern consumerism and like, fitting into the modern world through fashion, or something.” 

****

And so, Darcy once again found herself in Agent Coulson’s office, yelling about how they were treating Captain America.

“Natasha has a bigger wardrobe than Captain Rogers and she wears her jumpsuit regularly!”

Coulson just nodded along as he let her rant. Darcy barging into his office was becoming somewhat of a regular occurrence ever since she started helping Captain Rogers adjust to modern life. Coulson didn’t know everything that Darcy was teaching the Captain, but she had been taking an interest in current events and seemed to be learning how to work modern technologies. The Captain would probably be ready to serve again soon. Fury would be pleased. Jane was coming along with her research and Thor would most likely be back soon. Fury’s “Avengers Initiative” would be starting quite soon, it seemed. On the other hand, he didn’t much look forward to dealing with all of them. Agent Barton had a habit of perching places around headquarters and accidentally scaring people when they found him when he wasn’t on missions and Natasha could be quite intimidating when she wasn’t supposed to be otherwise. And Thor would probably need to learn just as much about the modern world as the Captain had. Probably even more. He was technically an alien, after all. Well, Darcy could do that too. Superhero integration was now her division. Let her baby-sit them. He had more important things to do. He tuned back into what Darcy was saying once he made a note to tell Fury how things were progressing with the Captain.

“And furthermore, it could be seen as a lesson in crowd control, economics, inflation, industry and all sorts of other related fields. So, in summation, if I could get between five hundred and a thousand dollars to buy the Captain a whole new wardrobe, I would appreciate it.” Darcy crossed her arms and looked at him expectantly. “And before you protest at the cost, she’s used to nice clothes that last, not the crappy ones that are made for cheap these days. I’d rather not have her horrified and uncomfortable in her new clothing. Also, she’s probably going to need a nice dress for all those fundraisers Stark throws. I’m sure he’ll invite the team once they’ve all started working together.”

“I’ll give you seven hundred for basics. Don’t spend it all at once. If the Captain needs a dress, we can get that later. Where do you intend to take her?”

“I was thinking Bloomingdale’s. It’s a large department store where she can get everything she needs, the quality is pretty good, and it’s definitely a place where she can be exposed to current culture. If she doesn’t find anything, or is too freaked out by the prices, I might take her to the outlets. I’m sure Natasha wouldn’t mind coming with us.”

“You can ask her yourself. If she says no, I’ll assign you another female agent to come along. But you’re right. The Captain should get out more, and having an appropriate, and more comfortable wardrobe will certainly make that possible. I heard that the museum trip went well. She wasn’t recognized and I hear she quite enjoyed the exhibition.” He smiled innocently at her. “As you seem to always be accusing me of being a robot, and yes, I am aware that you do that, let me assure you that I do indeed care about others. I’ve noticed that she has been much happier lately, which has certainly helped our supply of punching bags.”

“Thank you. Sorry about the robot comments. The agents are still being weird around the Captain. I think they follow your instructions very literally, thus the whole robot thing. I think you need to fix their coding.” She chuckled to herself. “I’ll let you know what Agent Romanoff says.” Darcy left the office while Coulson laughed over her comments. He didn’t mind her barging in and yelling as much as he used to because it meant a break of amusement in his day. When he was at headquarters things tended to get boring.

*****

“So, welcome to Bloomingdale’s.” Darcy made a sweeping gesture with her arm as they entered through the main doors. “Did you ever come here before the war?”

Steph craned her neck up towards the ceiling, which was decorated with all sorts of goods. “Not really. Bucky and I would come by around Christmas time to look at the decorations and window displays, but we never went inside.” She shrugged. “It was too expensive and we didn’t want to get kicked out.”

“Well, I have here a SHIELD credit card with a seven hundred dollar limit. So we can’t dress you in Armani suits, but we can definitely get you a nice pair of jeans and anything else you might need. Also, this doesn’t have to be the only shop we visit. There are plenty of other stores in the city. I myself am partial to Columbus Circle’s selection of shops,” Darcy said, as she led Steph towards the escalators.

“I have a personal shopper at Barney’s. If the selection is not satisfactory here, we should go there. I find the quality at Barney’s much higher,” said Natasha, as she got onto the escalator, looking like she should be modeling on a runway, rather than going shopping with Darcy and Steph. 

“I think Barney’s might be a little bit out of our budget for today’s trip, but perhaps once Steph starts getting a paycheck for the Avengers Initiative she might want to spend some of her money on that.” Darcy whirled around just as Steph was opening her mouth. “And don’t tell me you don’t need a paycheck because you’re doing it for the “good of humanity.” Everyone needs to eat and be able to enjoy their lives. Think of all the art supplies, or even the art, you could buy with your paycheck.” Steph got a wistful look on her face after Darcy said then, then shook her head. “If Natasha can have a personal shopper at Barney’s, though she has been with SHIELD for a long time and I’m sure she has money saved from other jobs,” Darcy looked askance at Natasha, “I’m sure your salary should be sufficient to even buy yourself a place, should you ever want to move out of your quarters at SHIELD.”

“But that is why I volunteered for the Super Soldier program. It’s why Doctor Erskine picked me in the first place.” Steph gestured earnestly at herself. “I do have some money saved from during the war though. After I was declared dead, the money went into founding SHIELD, and when I was discovered alive, SHIELD transferred the money, with interest, back to me. It’s kind of more than I know what to do with.” Steph ruffled the hair at the back of her head in a gesture Darcy had come to recognize as showing that she felt awkward. “But you’re right, there are certainly things that I could do with it. I’m sure with your help,” Steph gave Darcy a teasing look, “I could figure out something to do with it.”

Natasha just rolled her eyes at them as she flipped through a clothing rack. “I did not have much of a choice in my profession, but I once believed that I was a ballerina, and find that I still enjoy ballet, despite the lie. I attend dance performances in my spare time and have found a studio where I can practice.” She turned to Steph, “There is nothing wrong with doing the same for yourself, Ms. Rogers. Perhaps classes at the Art Student’s League would suit you. They even have figure drawing classes,” she said with a smirk.

Darcy cracked up. “Oh honey, she’s not that modern yet. Her forties sensibilities are still intact.”

Steph glared at Darcy. “Art is different from pornography, Darcy. And there is nothing feminist about pornography, no matter what you say.”

“But you haven’t even watched any of the ones I sent!” Darcy whined at her. “They’re totally tasteful, I swear. And there’s nothing wrong with enjoying sex. Especially given your abilities. Natasha can control a man with a quirk of her eyebrow! I’m sure she knows exactly what I’m talking about.” Darcy winked at her.

“I defected to the United States for the love of a man, but was welcomed because of my skills. They did not care why I did it, only that I could be of use. We have since parted ways, but I have not let it affect my work. Though sometimes I do find myself distracted by his uniform. It does cling in the most appealing way.” Natasha’s eyes glazed over, and Darcy assumed she was picturing the guy in question. And then she thought about what Natasha had said.

“Wait, he works at SHIELD? Who is it? Who is it?” Darcy jumped up and down like a teenage girl. Except that made her boobs move way too much, so she stopped before she accidentally flashed someone.

Natasha just looked shifty-eyed and moved on to the next rack, handing Steph clothes if she didn’t immediately recoil from them. “We are here for a reason. I believe we have a sufficient amount of clothing for Ms. Rogers to enter the dressing room.”

The first thing that Steph came out in, looking pained, was a deep purple dress. The next thing was a pair of jeans that fit her wonderfully and a purple shirt. After that was another purple shirt.

Darcy looked over at Natasha. “You seem to have picked out quite a lot of purple clothing, and Ms. Rogers looks best in blue. Anything, or anyone, on your mind while you were picking out clothes for her? A Mr. Barton, perhaps?” Natasha barely reacted, only arching her eyebrow at Darcy. “I knew it!” Darcy crowed. 

“Knew what?” Steph asked as she stepped out of the dressing room again, in a deep blue v-neck t-shirt.

“Who Natasha had been ogling in their uniform. That looks great on you. Don’t try any more of the purple on, blue is your color. And those jeans look great.”

Steph blushed at Darcy’s comments. “Thanks. But it’s all so expensive. Are you sure we should be spending this much money?”

“Oh honey, unless you want total crap that feels horrible against your skin, this is the price range we’re shopping in. Now show me which items you liked best and we can go get some snacks. I want details from Natasha!”

After ringing up, with Steph cringing at the price of each item as it was rung up, they headed to a Starbucks for coffee and snacks, mostly for Steph since her fast metabolism required them, though Darcy could never say no to something sweet, and then headed for Central Park.

“Okay, spill,” Darcy said as she sat down on a bench and looked at Natasha expectantly. Natasha just looked impassively back at her. 

“It is exactly as I said before. I defected to the US for him, but we are not currently together, even though we work together, as you surmised.”

“Yeah, but how did it happen? How did you meet? Is he good in bed? Is his butt as cute as him uniform makes it look?”

Steph cracked up, having gotten somewhat used to what Darcy was like. She did not envy Natasha the barrage of questions directed at her. Darcy gave her a look and then returned to trying to stare down Natasha. Steph wasn’t sure who would win. Darcy could be pretty persistent. But Natasha’s mouth was beginning to curve into a smirk as Darcy continued to ask more and more inappropriate questions. 

“But seriously, I totally admire your self-control. I’d totally be all over him if I were actually into guys on a non-visual level.”

Steph choked on the sip of coffee she was taking.

“You okay there, Steph?” 

“Yeah, yeah. Totally fine. Just, um, it was hotter than I thought.”

Darcy laughed. “That’s what she said!” Natasha and Steph just gave her weird looks as she cracked up. “Oh wait, I totally haven’t explained that joke to you! It’s where you make something into an innuendo by following it with “That’s what she said.” We should watch the Office tomorrow! Pop culture!” Darcy made a Home Alone face. “So many things from that show in the last few years. Well, pretty much everything on NBC on Thursdays. But anyways, back to you and Barton,” she said as she turned her gaze on Natasha. “Can I at least get some details? I’d like to know I know something he doesn’t know I know the next time he sneaks up on me and gives that smirk of his.” Darcy paused for a moment. “Oh my god, he totally got that from you!”

“We met during a mission where we were both assigned to do the same thing. For different sides, obviously. When it came time to finish the mission, I found that I did not want to part ways with him, and so defected to the US with the intel I had gained. They were happy for it, since it was much better than what he had gotten off our target. And yes, his butt is as cute as it looks.”

Darcy just smiled at Natasha. “Thank you!” she crooned at her. Darcy leaned over and put her head on Natasha’s shoulder as she smiled up at her. Natasha just arched her eyebrow, meaning she was amused. “Want to hit up Barney’s before we head back?” Natasha’s mouth curved up, and she nodded, taking the offer for the thank you it was. 

****

After the shopping trip with Darcy and Natasha, Steph seemed to be more comfortable. Darcy even caught her arching her eyebrow at an agent whom she had caught staring at her ass. And then she gave him a lecture about respecting others, because you had to be able to trust your compatriots in battle. Natasha and the Captain had been spending quite a lot of time together. One time she even caught Natasha smiling a real smile while Steph laughed wholeheartedly. Darcy was glad the she was finally fitting in and making a place for herself. But that didn’t mean their lessons had stopped.

Darcy had moved on from general history to literature. She pushed into their room with a pile of books in her arms and plunked them down onto the table.

“Here are some books that have had an effect on American society in the last seventy years. Now, I brought this one,” Darcy held up Twilight, wrinkling her nose, “because it’s been kind of a media sensation for the last few years and the newest movie comes out soon, so you’ll probably be hearing a lot about it on tv. But don’t feel the need to read it unless you think you’ll enjoy laughing at it. The writing is cringe-worthy, but some of the ridiculousness of the books is lost in the movies. Also, while I love Twilight for a good laugh, some people are of the sad idea that it is a well-written love story.” Darcy shook her head and rolled her eyes. “Mostly it’s just stupid and funny and gives you an idea of it’s like to be a fifteen year old girl. If you can’t stomach the writing, we’ll just watch the movies. We’re going to watch them anyways for the bad acting.”

The next week found them at the apartment Darcy shared with Jane watching the movies in question. They had just finished watching the first Twilight movie, which Steph had agreed was indeed hilarious. They had switched to eighties movies, because at least those were supposed to be funny. And they were classics, of course. Which put them here, on the couch, with Darcy feeling awkward. 

She wasn’t sure if Steph was just being her normally friendly, and now twenty-first century self, or if she was cuddled up to Darcy because she was into her. There had been Peggy Carter, after all, and Steph knew about Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell being repealed.

Darcy’s lesson about the sixties had made Steph blush, but she had seemed a lot more comfortable around Darcy and Natasha afterwards. Darcy had also seen that she’d signed her name to the petition for passing gay marriage in New York, and saw her grinning at the picture on the front page of the New York Times the day it was passed. It had meant a lot to Darcy as well, even though she didn’t really believe in marriage. However, whenever Darcy tried to bring the topic of Steph’s sexuality up, Steph blushed and changed the subject, saying it wasn’t relevant to her lessons and her work at SHIELD. When Steph had her reunion with her war buddies Darcy had joked that she could finally have her date. Steph had just smiled sadly and told her that her date wouldn’t be attending. Even so, there had been fewer destroyed punching bags than usual that weekend.

Darcy had been sending Steph lesbian porn as part of her lessons on modern feminism, but the Captain had refused to watch them, saying it was “an inappropriate use of SHIELD time.” Natasha thought it was all hilarious and kept sending Darcy and the Captain vintage porn, which “The Captain might be more comfortable with.” Except that what Natasha had sent was way more hardcore than what Darcy had been giving the Captain. But of course, Natasha’s point that the vintage porn was just as explicit as the modern was valid. She just didn’t think the Captain would appreciate 40s female dominatrix porn. She could see the appeal for Natasha though. 

And now Darcy was sitting next to Steph and thinking about porn. Even more awkward! Darcy sighed and leaned back against the couch, only to find that Steph’s arm was there. And then Steph moved her arm so that it was around Darcy’s shoulders. And with that, Darcy relaxed and leaned against Steph. 

“Hey,” she said as she looked up at Steph.

“Hey,” Steph said back, moving so that they were closer. And then she leaned down and kissed Darcy softly on the mouth. 

“Oh,” Darcy exhaled. Steph smiled softly at her. Darcy smiled back, crooking her finger at Steph. 

“Come closer.” Steph leaned down and Darcy buried her fingers in Steph’s short hair, pulling her down for a kiss. Darcy opened her mouth and Steph followed suit, allowing Darcy’s tongue into her mouth. Steph stiffened and then relaxed, moaning as Darcy nipped at her lips. Steph’s hands drifted down to Darcy’s hips, gripping them and lifting Darcy into Steph’s lap.

“Mmm,” Darcy sighed in contentment. She had been lusting after the Captain since they had first met. It was nice to know that she hadn’t been the only one.

The door opened and Jane walked through. “Darcy, I just made the most –,” she cut off with a squeak as she noticed Darcy and Steph on the couch. Darcy and Steph sprang apart, with Darcy half in her lap and half on the couch. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt,” Jane apologized. “I’ll just go to my room. Uh, just continue with whatever you were doing. Pretend I’m not even here. In fact, maybe I’ll just go back to the lab. I can just spend the night there. It’s a really comfortable couch,” she babbled as she started walking back towards the door.

“Jane, I know exactly how comfortable that couch is compared to your bed. There is no way you are going back. I know the hours you’ve been keeping lately and you seriously need some sleep. Now go to bed,” Darcy commanded, removing her legs from Steph’s lap. Jane closed the door, turned around and retreated to her bedroom. That was why they had recruited her to SHIELD as Jane’s assistant. She might have been quiet to start with, but her sass was more than enough to make sure Jane did her work without killing herself. She really wanted Thor back and was working hard to try to make it happen. Even though she now spent most of her time with Steph, she still made sure she had time for Jane. The girl was starting to become kind of mopey.

Steph looked at her and blushed. “I think I’m just gonna go home. I uh, had a good time.” Steph stood up and moved towards the door to put her shoes on. Darcy just kind of sat on the couch in shock. Was Captain American really giving her the brush-off? Was Steph really giving her the brush-off? Just as she was about to leave Steph came back over to Darcy, leaned down, and kissed her softly on the mouth. “I had a really good time tonight,” she whispered into Darcy’s ear as she pulled away.

Darcy smiled up at her with her biggest grin. “I did too. See you tomorrow?”

“As long as you show up, I’ll be there.” Steph winked at Darcy as she closed the door behind her.

*******

When Darcy got to work the next morning Captain America wasn’t there. She waited for half an hour before deciding that it meant the Captain didn’t want to see her that morning, rather than that she was just running late. Ah well. Darcy wouldn’t have minded continuing her thing with Steph, but if she’d changed her mind Darcy wasn’t going to push. After all, how much could a make out session really mean? And so Darcy gathered her things up and headed down to her desk to get some work done for Coulson.

On her way down, she ran into Natasha. She was muttering angrily under her breath in Russian, but stopped when she saw Darcy heading her way. 

Natasha smirked at her. “While the Captain is not one to kiss and tell, I do believe that congratulations are in order. The Captain came in this morning with the biggest smile I have seen in a long time and had the cutest smile on her face any time someone said your name.” Natasha let out a soft laugh, before her face hardened. “Perhaps you should speak with her. She’s quite upset at the moment. She met Tony Stark not some time ago.” Natasha gave Darcy a look that spoke volumes. Apparently Tony had been the asshole he was so good at being.

“I’ll see what I can do,” Darcy assured her. At least it cleared up why Steph hadn’t been there earlier. “Is it safe to assume she’s destroying the gym again?” she sighed, giving Natasha a look that said “tell me how bad it is so I know what I’m dealing with.” Every once in a while Steph would look really sad, and spend a day or two in the gym, destroying as many punching bags as Fury could supply. She’s pretty sure Fury’s just glad the Captain hasn’t started punching through walls like the Hulk can. Darcy’d read his file too and he left behind some pretty impressive debris.

“I think she might have gone to her quarters. I’ll take you down there.” Natasha motioned for Darcy to follow her.

Darcy had never been down to the living quarters. She didn’t live in headquarters and hadn’t wanted to intrude on the privacy on those who did. Especially before she got to know Natasha and Steph. Back before she knew Natasha she’d pretty much lived in fear of pissing her off. And while she now gets her sense of humor and they’ve bonded, she’d still been wary of intruding on her space. Especially since Agent Barton lived down there too.

When the elevator opened, Natasha just said, “Her’s is the door at the end of the hall to the right,” and didn’t follow Darcy out of the elevator.

“Aren’t you coming with me?” Darcy whirled around to look at her.

“I have things to do. And I don’t think she wants a lot of company right now.” She shrugged and lifted an eyebrow. “But I think you’ll be able to help her. You probably know her the best out of all of us.” And then she let the elevator doors close.

Darcy turned around and headed down the hall with a sense of apprehension. She really didn’t know what to expect. Steph was usually angry about things that happened during the war or human rights violations, things Darcy couldn’t really do anything about. Though she’d noticed that Steph had been browsing charity websites, some of which had recently gotten significant anonymous donations.

Darcy wasn’t really sure what Tony could have done that would have Steph brooding in her room. Yes, be an asshole, but Steph was pretty good at brushing off people being assholes. In fact, Natasha had been working with her on how to deal with them. Steph wasn’t that great with people whom she believed to be abusing power, though. Darcy worried her bottom lip between her teeth, took a deep breath and knocked on Steph’s door.

“Who is it?” Steph grumbled, a hostile tone in her voice.

“Um, it’s Darcy.” She wrung her hands, wondering if perhaps she shouldn’t be down there. “Natasha said –,” Darcy cut off as the door swung open to reveal a disgruntled Captain America. Steph was wearing her uniform, which Darcy had never seen her wear in person before. “Oh,” she gasped at the sight of Steph. 

Steph pulled her inside and then gave her a rough kiss, pushing her up against the door she had closed behind Darcy. Her lips were soft against Darcy’s but her body was unyielding as she pushed Darcy into the door. Darcy melted against Steph, her body going boneless, propped up by Steph and the door. Darcy moaned, and Steph drew away.

“Tony – is – an –asshole,” she growled as she nipped at Darcy’s neck. Darcy just moaned in response. Steph’s hand came up to cup Darcy’s breast, her hand slipping underneath Darcy’s blouse, while her other hand cupped Darcy’s ass and ground their hips together. 

“What did he do?” she gasped as she drew back from Steph, her head leaning against the door.

Steph growled and captured Darcy’s lips once again. She lifted Darcy up, and Darcy wrapped her legs around Steph’s waist out of instinct. Steph backed them up towards her bed. Apparently her quarters consisted of a bedroom and two or three other rooms. One of the doors Darcy saw as Steph deposited her on the bed might have been a closet, thankfully now filled with more than white button downs. 

Steph peeled herself out of her uniform, leaving her in her underwear. She was breathing hard as she leaned down to kiss Darcy again. She had been wearing a sports bra underneath her uniform, but it was clear by her cleavage that Steph had ample breasts, much like Darcy herself. Darcy brought her hands up, running them through Steph’s hair while they kissed before moving them down to palm Steph’s breasts through her bra.

Steph’s hands were busy unbuttoning Darcy’s blouse, while Darcy’s were busy with Steph’s breasts. Darcy sighed as Steph unhooked her bra, and she released Steph’s breasts so that Steph could remove her shirt and bra. Once that was done, Steph’s hands moved down towards Darcy’s pants, while she took one of Darcy’s breasts into her mouth.

“You know, for a girl who claims to have never learned to “dance,” you certainly know what you’re doing,” Darcy gasped. Steph had opened Darcy’s pants and was kneading Darcy through her underwear. 

Darcy’s phone beeped, startling them out of their haze of lust.

“Fuck,” Darcy panted. Her phone beeped again. 

Steph drew back, embarrassed about attacking Darcy the way she had. “If I was too forward with you –,” Darcy cut her off with a kiss.

“It seems I have made you a modern girl after all,” she smirked at Steph. She grabbed her phone and groaned. “Coulson calls.” Darcy started gathering up her clothing and putting it back on. She kissed Steph, who was sitting on the bed, a little shell-shocked by what she had just done with Darcy, even though she was the aggressor. “See you later, okay? We still need to talk about what happened this morning. I’ll be at my desk if you need me.” 

Steph just nodded, sitting there in her underwear as Darcy departed to get back to work.

*****

Darcy leaned back against the wall of the elevator and heaved a sigh. She had almost just had sex with Captain America and it wasn’t even lunchtime yet! She tucked her shirt back into her pants, checked her hair in the reflective walls of the elevator, and then emerged to see what it was that Coulson wanted from her.

The first person she saw when she emerged from the elevator was Natasha, who smirked at her and then leaned down to whisper in hear ear, “Your shirt’s buttoned wrong,” before walking away with a faint smile on her face.

Darcy felt her face grow warm and rushed to the nearest bathroom to fix her shirt. She splashed some water on her face and checked in the mirror to make sure Steph hadn’t given her any hickeys. A mis-buttoned shirt was one thing, but hickeys were quite another. Her neck was a little bit red, but nothing too noticeable. At least, not enough for anyone to comment on, even if they should notice. It could always be due to her bag. Darcy’s eyes widened and she smacked her hand against her face. She’d left her bag in Steph’s room. If she was lucky Steph would discreetly drop it off at her desk or she wouldn’t need it. Her phone beeped. It was text from Natasha this time.

“I guess you did a good job cheering her up,” it said. She could almost hear the smug amusement that Natasha was probably radiating.

“She’s still pretty pissed,” Darcy replied, not looking up from her phone as she exited the bathroom. “She didn’t seem like she wanted to talk about it, if you catch my drift.” Darcy waggled her eyebrows at the phone in her hands. She knew that Natasha probably couldn’t see her – with SHIELD nothing like that was ever a certainty – but she was feeling a little mischievous now and in the mood to tease Natasha.

Darcy was staring at her phone waiting for Natasha’s reply as she walked towards Coulson’s office. Which was why she smacked right into him and Tony Stark. 

“Omph,” Darcy grunted as she collided with what could only be a person. She looked up from her phone.

“Nice to see you’re attentive to your surroundings, Ms. Lewis,” Coulson smirked at her.

Tony looked her up and down, leering once he took stock of her figure. “Is she a new recruit? Most of your staff are at least a little more observant,” he smirked at her.

“Ms. Lewis was brought on as an assistant to one of our scientists. She is currently helping with some public relations issues.”

“Oh, is that what we’re going to be calling it? We had some public relations issues and guess what? We found Captain America!” Darcy laughed. Tony smiled at her. He had a good smile, she’d give him that. But it didn’t excuse him being an asshole to Steph.

Coulson gave Darcy a tight smile. “Perhaps you could show Mr. Stark around the facilities and then to his workshop. He’ll be working on some tech for us today.” He was foisting Tony Stark off on her. Apparently Coulson didn’t like him very much either. Coulson turned around and walked back to his office. Darcy started to make a face at him for leaving her with Stark, but then thought better of it. Sometimes it was like Coulson had eyes in the back of his head and if this is what Darcy got when he wasn’t pissed at her, she’d hate to see what he did if she did something to piss him off. Besides her usual sassiness, of course.

She heaved a sigh and glared at Stark, who was very obviously staring at her chest. “Don’t you have a girlfriend?” Darcy said with a tone of disdain, her hand on her hip. She rolled her eyes. “C’mon, let’s go.”

“We’re on a break,” he mumbled as he followed behind her. Darcy could feel his eyes on her ass as she walked. No wonder Steph had been so pissed off. Darcy could only imagine what he had said to her.

Darcy huffed a sigh and leaned back once they got to the elevator.

“You know, usually girls think I’m charming and handsome and are much nicer to me,” Tony gave her a sidelong glance, a hurt look in his eyes. He was probably faking it.

“All you’ve done is leer at me so far. Why would I find you charming?” Darcy sneered at him. “Coulson told me to show you around, he never said I had to be nice. Thor smashed coffee cups and he was better behaved than you.”

“I’m sorry, but what exactly did I do to you to make you this upset at me?” Tony cocked his head at Darcy, clearly waiting for an answer.

“It’s not so much what you did to me as what you did to Captain America.” The doors dinged open and Darcy exited the elevator quickly, causing Tony to have to rush after her.

Just at that moment, Steph emerged from one of the labs. She didn’t notice Tony and jogged over to Darcy.

“Hey, you forgot your bag. I went to find you at your desk, but Natasha told me you’d be here. Are we still on for tonight?” She had changed into one of the shirts that she had bought with Darcy and Natasha and it clung to her perfectly. Darcy’s bag was slung over one shoulder and her hair looked disheveled, like she’d been running her hands through it.

Darcy was momentarily stunned. Then she smiled at Steph, ignoring Tony completely. “Of course. I’ll swing by yours once I’m done for the day.” That didn’t sound too incriminating. Tony’d probably have a field day if he knew Captain America was a lesbian.

Steph was about to lean down to give Darcy a kiss, and then noticed Tony standing behind Darcy, frozen in place with a stunned look on his face. Steph straightened up and turned an icy gaze on Tony. “Mr. Stark,” she nodded at him.

Being addressed by the Captain startled Tony out of his daze, and he smirked back at the Captain. “Oh, I see how it is. Don’t worry, I won’t tell. Maybe.” He winked at them. “I do believe the lovely Ms. Lewis here was going to give me a tour of the facilities,” he gave the Captain a look through his eyelashes, managing to look both innocent and completely debauched at the same time. 

Steph lunged forward, Darcy barely managing to get out of her way, and punched him.

****

They were all sitting in Coulson’s office. Tony had an ice pack over his eye, his face already turning purple underneath it. Steph was slouched with her arms crossed, a sullen look on her face. Darcy sat in the middle, rolling her eyes. Coulson just looked at them all and sighed.

“I guess I should just be glad you didn’t break his nose,” Coulson shook his head.

“He started it,” Steph muttered.

“I’m sorry, what?” Tony exclaimed, turning towards Steph. “I’m the one with a black eye here.”

“You should just be glad I didn’t knock you unconscious. Who knows where you might have woken up,” Steph deadpanned then glared at him.

“I was just joking around. I wouldn’t actually try to steal Captain America’s girl, no matter how cute she was.” Tony huffed and leaned back in his seat.

Darcy sat up straight in her chair and widened her eyes. “Not my fault,” she blurted out.

“I’d give you all a time out, but I think if I did that I would just find Mr. Stark’s mangled body when I came back.” Coulson played with the pen on his desk. “Just go. Leave each other alone. And Mr. Stark, please try to refrain from any impolite remarks. The Hulk is going to be joining our team. I’d hate to see what he’d do to you should you also offend him.” Coulson waved them out. 

Darcy got out of her chair to follow Steph. “Ms. Lewis, a word,” Coulson called just as she was out the door. Darcy flinched. She turned around slowly and moved back towards where Coulson was splayed out on a chair behind his desk. “Am I to understand that you are currently engaging in a relationship with Captain Rogers?”

“Well, it’s not like I planned it. I mean, she kissed me first. We’ve only really just started – ” Darcy babbled. 

Coulson made a motion with his hand, indicating for Darcy to stop talking. “Well, as long as you’re not corrupting a national hero. Be careful with her, okay?” Coulson’s face took on a soft look. “She’s only just made it back and she’s lost so much. Try not to break her heart too.”

“I’ll try, sir.” Darcy mock saluted him. “And if anyone’s corrupting her it’s Natasha,” Darcy smirked as Coulson waved her out of the room, heaving a sigh into his hands. She left with a bounce in her step.

****

Darcy walked quickly down the hall to where she saw Steph and Tony waiting for the elevator and glaring at each other. Steph’s expression lightened as she saw Darcy, but darkened again with a glance at Tony.

“C’mon,” Darcy murmured as she grabbed Steph’s arm. “We can just take the stairs, okay?” 

Steph looked down at Darcy and nodded. She let Darcy lead her away, looking back to glare at Tony once more before they entered the stairwell.

“You really didn’t have to do that, you know,” Darcy said once they were alone. “I mean, it’s not that I don’t appreciate it.” She shrugged. “I’ve kind of always wanted someone to punch out someone for my honor. But you do know that you are going to eventually have to work with him, right? What did he do this morning that pissed you off so much?”

Steph sighed and ran her hand through her hair as they started walking down the stairs. “He just looks so much like Howard…” she trailed off and shook her head. “I went in expecting him to be Howard, and I guess I was just disappointed when he wasn’t. He was definitely rude and condescending, but I let it effect me too much. I shouldn’t have expected him to be Howard, no matter how alike they look.” Steph turned to Darcy and halted their descent, putting her hand on Darcy’s shoulder. “But he went too far with you. No one should ever treat you that way, and you shouldn’t let them.” Steph tucked a lock of hair behind Darcy’s ear. “I don’t care how much times have changed, there is no excuse for being rude to a lady.”

Darcy smiled and went up on her tippy-toes to drag Steph down for a kiss. They broke apart when they heard someone clearing their throat above them. 

It was Coulson. “I know I gave my permission and everything, but please don’t make out in the stairwell.” He made a pained expression at them and then hurried past them, muttering under his breath about them being “as bad as Romanoff and Barton.”

Darcy laughed and leaned against Steph. “You know, if Stark had really gotten out of line I would have just tasered him, right? I mean, you had just given me my bag.” She patted the place in her bag where she kept her taser. Steph laughed. Then her stomach grumbled loudly, causing her to blush and Darcy to crack up.

“Want to grab some lunch? It’s almost two and I think we might have just gotten the rest of the day off. You can work out your aggression towards Tony on some punching bags afterwards and then we can go out for dinner, maybe catch a movie?” She poked Steph in the stomach. 

“That sounds nice. Could we go to downtown? I really liked that diner you took me to the other week.” 

“Absolutely. Got your metrocard this time?” she teased as she slipped her arm around Steph’s as they walked down the stairs.

*****

Darcy unlocked her door and swung it open, Steph urging her through with kisses along the back of her neck.

“Jane?” Darcy called out. There was no response. Darcy smiled and turned to Steph who was closing the door behind them. “It seems we don’t have to worry about being interrupted tonight.” 

They had gone out to dinner, and ended up going dancing instead of to the movies. Steph actually wasn’t too bad, once Darcy showed her how to move. The music in the club had started off with classic dance music, but changed to club music as the night went on. And so Darcy had taught Steph how to grind. And the girl was ridiculously good at it. Darcy had moaned, Steph had kissed her and then murmured, “want to get out of here?” sending tingles down Darcy’s back. And so here they were, alone in Darcy’s apartment. Just like last time.

Steph smiled down at Darcy and closed the distance between them, her hands sliding down Darcy’s sides as she brought their mouths together. 

Darcy smiled into their kiss, going up on her tippy-toes to wrap her arms around Steph’s neck. They kissed sweetly, going slow rather than rushing. As they kissed Darcy unwrapped her arms from around Steph’s neck and buried it in her hair, her thumbs stroking Steph’s jaw as she opened her mouth, slipping her tongue into Darcy’s mouth.

And then Steph broke off their kiss to lift Darcy up in her arms, carrying her towards her bedroom, bride-style.

“Oh my, carrying me into the bedroom. Shall I be the blushing bride, shy on my wedding night?” Darcy sank back against Steph’s chest, her hand across her forehead, as if she was about to faint. Steph laughed and kissed Darcy, Darcy’s arms going around her neck for a better grip. 

“Hold on,” Steph said as she shifted to hold Darcy with one arm as she opened the door. As the door swung open, Steph shifted her back into the bridal carry and Darcy felt nervous all of a sudden. Coulson’s words from earlier came back to her. She turned to look at Steph’s face and she smiled at her, unwrapping her arms from around Steph’s neck and drawing her in for a soft kiss, her hands cupping Steph’s face. 

Steph walked over the threshold and deposited Darcy on her bed. She leaned down over Darcy and kissed her hard, her large hand supporting Darcy’s head so she wouldn’t be knocked over. Steph’s other hand started creeping up Darcy’s thigh, going under the skirt of Darcy’s dress. Darcy gasped, breaking their kiss. She gave Steph a mischievous look before separating and drawing her dress up over her head. And though Steph had seen her nearly naked earlier that day, her eyes still widened in wonder, making Darcy blush. Darcy wasn’t usually one to be shy, but this, with Steph, it felt like it meant something. 

Not that Darcy didn’t like Steph as a person. But this was starting to feel like a real thing, rather than her usual random hook-ups. She’d been expecting to keep things with Steph casual, introduce her to the whole concept of friends with benefits, kind of like what Natasha had with Clint. She denied it, but Darcy had noticed a hickey on Clint’s neck the other day and had had to run into the bathroom to crack up without seeming like a crazy person.

Steph stared at Darcy hungrily. “May I?” she asked softly as she moved to touch Darcy, who was now standing. 

Darcy nodded, too overwhelmed with feelings to speak. Steph began kissing her neck, pushing Darcy’s bra strap down as her mouth reached Darcy’s shoulder. Darcy moaned. Steph’s arms embraced her. It was a good thing because Darcy’s legs turned to jelly as Steph’s mouth reached her breast, licking at Darcy’s nipple through the lace of her bra.

Steph unhooked Darcy’s bra, taking it off as she moved her attention to Darcy’s other breast. Darcy arched into Steph’s touch, her legs no longer holding her up. Steph laid her gently down on the bed, climbing on and covering Darcy with her body as she resumed her task. Steph’s shirt slid over the skin of Darcy’s stomach, making her shiver.

Darcy sat up, detaching Steph from her chest, drawing her up for a kiss. She pulled Steph’s shirt out of her skirt, unbuttoning it and taking it off, then unzipping her skirt. Steph shimmied out of her skirt, straddling Darcy’s hips.

Darcy brought her hands up to Steph’s shoulders and pushed her down, maneuvering her so that she was leaning back against the pillows on Darcy’s bed. Steph’s chest heaved as she looked up at Darcy. Darcy smiled her Cheshire Cat smile as she started mimicking what Steph had been doing to her. 

However, once Darcy felt she had paid sufficient attention to Steph’s breasts, she started kissing her way down Steph’s body. Once she reached Steph’s waist, she sat up and tugged down Steph’s underwear, and then continued her kisses downward. Steph wriggled, and then her hips jerked as Darcy licked the hollow leading down to her crotch. 

“What are you doing?” she gasped as Darcy paused above her dark blonde curls. 

“Has no one ever done this for you before?” Darcy grinned. “I thought you knew what you were doing?”

“Peggy and I never really had much time alone. We had to be quick,” she smiled sadly. “We took what we could get, but we never got this far,” she gestured around the room.

“Well honey, take a deep breath because I am going to rock your world.” She paused, “I hope.” 

Steph breathed in and then groaned as Darcy ducked her head down and licked, parting Steph’s folds in order to gain better access to her clit. Steph’s hips bucked. Darcy shifted in order to pin Steph’s hips down, but she was no match to Steph’s super strength. Steph’s hips bucked up again and Darcy huffed a sigh.

“You’re going to have to stay still, otherwise I’m in danger of you breaking my nose.”

Steph huffed a laugh. “I’ll try to stay still.” Darcy hummed into her curls, while she curled a finger into Steph. Steph stiffened, but her hips didn’t buck, so Darcy continued with her ministrations.

Steph moaned and writhed, her juices dripping down Darcy’s chin. Darcy pumped her fingers in and out of Steph and could feel Steph clenching around them. Steph shuddered, letting out a load moan. Darcy worked her through her orgasm, grinning and wiping her chin off as she sat up.

“Wow,” Steph gasped, throwing a hand over her forehead. 

“Yeah,” Darcy smiled, leaning back, resting her weight on her hands.

Suddenly Steph sprang forward, pushing Darcy onto her back. “Your turn!”

Darcy laughed as Steph leaned over her. Steph kissed her, pushing her down into the bed.

“I’ve never done this before, so let me know if I’m doing it wrong,” Steph said shyly, ducking her head between Darcy’s legs.

*****

Darcy woke up the next morning to an arm around her waist. She turned her head to find Steph smiling at her.

“Morning,” Darcy said, nuzzling her face into Steph’s neck. Steph pulled Darcy to her so that they were spooning, her chin resting in the crook of her neck.

“Good morning!” Jane opened Darcy’s door. “I think I might have made a breakthrough last –,” she cut off as she saw Darcy and Steph in bed together.

Darcy sat up, detaching herself from Steph, and then pulled the sheet up as she realized she was flashing Jane, who was now covering her eyes with her hand.

“Sorry!” she screeched as she backed out of Darcy’s room. 

Darcy looked over at Steph. “That has got to stop happening,” she laughed.

“Mmm,” Steph nuzzled Darcy’s neck and wrapped her arms around Darcy’s waist, one of her hands coming up to grope at Darcy’s chest. Darcy giggled. Then she glanced at the clock. 

“Shit! It’s almost noon.” She jumped out of bed and grabbed for her phone. 

“Darcy, it’s Saturday. You don’t have to go in to work. Why don’t we go and get some lunch?”

*****

Darcy and Steph spent the rest of the weekend together at SHIELD headquarters rather than at Darcy’s so that they wouldn’t have to tiptoe around Jane. 

“You know, maybe you should get a place of your own,” Darcy suggested the next time they heard agents running down the hall. It was Monday, and she was getting dressed to go upstairs and go to work.

“Why don’t you make that my next lesson?” Steph came up behind Darcy and wrapped her arms around her shoulders. “Looking for an apartment in modern New York.”

“Sure,” Darcy turned around and kissed Steph. “Why don’t you talk to Coulson about it while I find out what work happened for me over the weekend.”

****

When Darcy got to her desk, she saw that there were flowers on it.

The note buried in the flowers simply said, “Sorry for the disrespect,” with no signature. But it was obvious who it was from. Darcy set the flowers aside, and got to work. She’d decide if she was going to accept the apology later. Depending on what he had done to make it up to Steph as well.

About an hour later Steph came by Darcy’s desk. “Looks like you and I are going apartment shopping as soon as you can arrange for it.” She noticed the flowers on Darcy’s desk. “Who are those from?”

“I think Mr. Stark might be trying to apologize. He’d better have left a nicer gift for you if he wants to get on my good side.”

“I haven’t noticed anything yet,” Steph shrugged. “But at least he’s admitting that he’s wrong.”

****

“I think that’s the last box,” Steph said as she put down a box marked “Books.”

“Oh good,” Darcy came in carrying grocery bags. “Now we get to unpack!”

“I can’t believe you were able to find your old apartment building!” Darcy unpacked the groceries into the fridge. 

Steph surveyed the apartment that she had bought. She had bought the entire top floor, which had been converted into a penthouse. She liked being able to see all the way to Manhattan from the roof. She could even see Stark tower from her roof. Tony had created exercise equipment specifically made to stand up to Steph’s strength as his apology to her. She’d begrudgingly taken it, but eventually had forgiven him when he continued to give her and Darcy thoughtful gifts. It had been him who had found their apartment. It meant a lot to Steph to be able to connect with her past, even if so much had changed.

In the year since she had woken up, she had found many things different, but having Darcy gave her a sense of stability in a world where not much was. Darcy walked up to where Steph was gazing out the big picture window, looking over their neighborhood. She could see some kids playing in the street and a park with a community garden within just a few blocks of them. Darcy wrapped her hand around Steph’s arm, “It’s nice.”

Steph smiled. “I’m glad it still exists, even if it is different.” She turned back to the living room. “Are you gonna help me unpack or what?”

“Only until we find the pots and pans. It’s almost dinner time and I know what you’re like when you’re hungry.”

Steph just smiled as she started sorting boxes between rooms, looking forward to living with Darcy.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much to everyone who helped with this and gave feedback! I know I asked pretty much everyone I knew who was remotely into the Avengers or fanfic, so it means a lot that they were all willing to help me through my nervousness.


End file.
